Trouble in Yoshiwara
by Dragorine
Summary: There have been murders in Yoshiwara and somehow Gin is involved. Tsukuyo asks him for advice.
1. Chapter 1

In the cloudless, moonless night in Yoshiwara, with only dim street lamps to light the dark, empty streets, a man and a woman walked, arm in arm. The woman was severely drunk. Often, she stumbled over her own feet with only the arm of the man, which she was grasping, to keep her from falling. She would giggled each time, loudly to herself, at her own clumsiness. The man himself didn't show any signs of intoxication and had a grin on his face as he watched the girl make a fool of herself.

The man led her further down the empty street and steered her down an unlit alley. She followed without objection and just giggled again when she bumped into the building on her right because the alley was so narrow. In her drunken haze she wondered where they were going, but she thought that nothing was amiss because he had generously paid for the night. However this was one of the most unusual customers she had ever been with. Most paid by the hour but he had paid, upfront, for the whole night and then took her out drinking and dancing. There were only a few more hours until dawn and, other than when they were on the dance floor, he hadn't even touched her. The sound of his voice brought her out of her drunken musings.

"I hope that you enjoyed yourself tonight my dear," he said to her, stopping abruptly.

"Oh I had a great time lover boy," she answered him in a manner in which she thought was sexy but was nothing more than some stumbling movements and slurred speech. "Maybe now it's your turn for some fun."

Since he had stopped she assumed that this was where he wanted it. This was Yoshiwara and it was hardly the first time that a man had wanted her in an alley. Some didn't have the money for a proper room and others enjoyed the thrill of being out in public. Obviously this man had enough to afford a room so she guessed that he was an exhibitionist. She started to loosen the obi on her kimono as she backed away from him so that she could give him a bit of a show.

"Maybe this is what you want lover?" she asked as the kimono slid from her body. She stood naked in the alley with the only light, coming from a lantern at the alley's mouth, forming a silhouette of her body.

In the dark the man smiled. For a cheap whore she was pretty. "You are truly a beautiful creature." He told her as he walked towards her.

She reached up towards his face as he approached her. A look of surprise flashed on her quickly, sobering face as a dagger stuck in her throat. She tried to let out a scream but the dagger wouldn't let her. He whispered soothing words into her ear and lowered her to the ground, gently, as her arms flailed about uselessly. Soon the world was fading away and finally she laid still with her eyes staring deadly into space.

When the body was found in the morning by the Hyakka she still laid there, naked, with the dagger still lodged in her throat; her open eyes staring up toward the bright blue sky. Her kimono was gone, but her money was scattered on and all around her. Pinned up above her to the wall of the alley with another dagger was an envelope. Written in blood red letters on the envelope was the name GINTOKI.

.X.

The knocking at the door got louder and louder. It was mid morning and Gin was trying his best to stay asleep, but the unrelenting banging forced him to come to the realization that he was very much awake. Cursing under his breath, as he got up, he hoped that it wasn't Otose looking for more rent money and if the offender was a door to door salesman he was pretty sure that he was going to be arrested for murder today. Why did he have to give Kagura the day off today?

"I don't have any money for rent you old hag!" Gin yelled at the wooden sliding door as he approached it still wearing his pajamas.

He reached out and slammed the door open. Standing there was a sight much better than the more than slightly aged landlord, but only a bit less dangerous. Tall, for a woman, and only slightly shorter than Gin, she stood confidently wearing right sleeveless black kimono with an orange leaf pattern with a slit on the right side up to her hip. She smoked on a plain wooden kiseru with iron capped ends and her blond hair was tied up with a small pair of kunai. She was beautiful despite the pair of scars on her face. Gin recognized her immediately as Tsukuyo, the leader of the Hyakka from Yoshiwara.

"I'm sorry I don't want any Girl Scout cookies," Gin told her and promptly tried to close the door.

Tsukuyo reached out and grabbed the door stopping it from closing. "I'm not a Girl Scout," she responded seriously.

Struggling further to close the door he yelled, "I'm not interested in anything else you might be selling."

She raised her voice in response, "You know I don't sell anything including the thing that your dirty mind seems to think that I would sell and even if I did you couldn't afford me." To stop him from closing the door she got herself in the doorway and used both arms to keep it open.

"You're right. I can't afford to have you in my life. You should just leave. Leave and find someone else to ply your trade to." Gin lifted up his foot and pushed her out of the doorway and slammed the door shut.

"Gintoki," Tsukuyo yelled to be heard through the door. "I've got a letter for you!"

"If that is so then you should leave it in my shoe box like other girls," he answered sarcastically.

"It isn't a love letter. It's a message left by a killer with your name on it."

Gin opened his door again and took the proffered envelope. Sure enough written in red ink was his name. He turned the envelope over and found that it had already been opened. He looked up at her and she just looked back at him unabashed. He opened it and found it empty. It was just an envelope with his name written on it.

"Oi, where is the letter? What is the point of giving me an empty envelope? Are you just trying to mess with me or is this some new way to recruit customers?" He asked her with his voice filled with suspicion and shock.

"There was no letter. An empty envelope with your name on it was found at three different murders over the last three nights. All of them were courtesans, all three were found naked and all three were killed with a dagger shoved to the hilt into their throat," she explained.

"I'm sorry but Yorozuya Gin is closed today." Gin turned around to head back to his office, but left the door open. Tsukuyo took this to be an invitation to enter his apartment and followed him.

"All I have to offer you to drink is some strawberry milk. Shinpatchi usually makes tea but he took a sick day or something and it's too much of a pain." He said all of this with his back turned as he rummaged though his refrigerator.

She sat down on his couch comfortably with her legs stretching out on to the cushions. She refilled her kiseru and lit it. Tobacco smoke soon filled the air. "I don't need anything. I'm fine."

Gin brought a quart of strawberry milk back to his desk and sat down. "So tell me what you came to see me about."

"I thought that you might know the killer since he seems to know you. All I need for you to do is tell me who he is. After that we of the Hyakka will bring him to justice." Tsukuyo blew a ring of smoke into the air. "If you can identify him then I will be out of your hair."

"I can't identify someone from an empty envelope." Gin took a big swig from the carton of milk and then asked, "Are there any other details?"

"All three daggers are identical in design. All three of them have a silver pommel with silver inlay work on the hilt." She got up and walked to Gin's desk. She pulled one of the daggers out and placed it onto the table. "Also, although he took their kimonos, he left their money as if he carelessly threw it on them."

Gin finished the carton and threw it across the room into the trashcan. "None of this rings a bell to me. Sorry I can't help you. Now if you will excuse me I think the latest issue of Jump came out today. You don't have a few hundred yen I could borrow do you?"

"I had hoped that you would have known something. I am sorry to have wasted your time," she apologized. Tsukuyo turned to leave and Gin walked her to the door. "It was good to see you again. You should come down to Yoshiwara more often."

"I don't have that kind of money," he replied while picking the wax from his ears.

"Then keep the dagger. Maybe you'll be able to pawn it off or something. When you do, come and I will give you a good price."

Tsukuyo made her way down the stairs from his porch on the second floor, leaving Yorozuya without a backwards glance. Gin watched her go. After making sure that she was out of site he slid the door shut. He slowly made his way down the hall, back to his desk, deep in thought. He stood there for a moment and sighed as he reached out and picked up the dagger still there. He studied the blade for only a moment before he returned to his bedroom to get changed.

After donning his usual black shirt and pants Gin shrugged on his white kimono with blue wave patterns near the ankles and wrists. He removed his right arm from the sleeve and tied his kimono closed with a black obi and strapped a black belt to hold his bokuto with Lake Toya inscribed in kanji on the hilt. He returned back to his desk and picked up the dagger laying there and tucked it behind his back. It looked like he wasn't going to be able to relax today.

The Kabuki district was bustling as Gin made his way through the street. The voices of the venders hawking their wares could barely be heard over cacophony of people going about their business. People from many walks of life walked these streets. In this district a person could find a chance to hide from their past. It was by no means a place for the faint of heart but a person, with enough mettle, could start over with few to no questions asked. The man Gin was looking for was a man who excelled at evading the law and used the Kabuki district to his advantage in doing so. He was the leader of the Joi and went by the name of Katsura Kotaro.

Katsura, or Zura as he's known, stopped by Yorozuya often to attempt to convince Gin to join the Joi, his squad of rebels trying to throw the yoke of Amanto influence off of the necks of Edo and the rest of Japan. Just yesterday Zura paid him a visit. He felt it necessary to keep Gin up to date on his life and mentioned that he started to work at the Kammako Club, a well know tranny bar, to replenish the Joi's funds. Itwas for this reason that Gin knew where to look for the elusive man.

It wasn't long before Gin was standing at the entrance of the Kammako Club. He felt a little apprehension before going in. It wasn't the employees that bothered him per se. It had more to do with his memories of working there. Saigou, the owner of this establishment, forced him to work here to teach him a lesson in respect and while he didn't necessarily respect the tranny lifestyle he did respect Saigou and he doubly made sure to show it to huge tranny whenever they met.

Since it was early afternoon the bar was nearly void of customers. The few there were chatting jovially and drinking with a couple of the hostesses in a corner. One of the hostesses, Ayumi, greeted Gin as he entered.

"Welcome to the Kammako Club, Gin. What will be your pleasure," Ayumi asked him with a bow. Ayumi tried hard to be feminine but his face, especially his chin, had a very masculine look to it.

"Yo, Ayumi, I'm looking for Zura."

"Hmm, Perhaps you mean Zurako?" the hostess asked?

"Yeah, sure, whatever," he answered. "If you could just point me in the right direction..."

"Zurako's shift doesn't start for another twenty, or so, minutes but since it is you, I am sure she wouldn't mind you taking a peek in the dressing room."

"Uh, thanks," Gin said without much enthusiasm. He moved past Ayumi towards the back rooms that were normally off limits to the regular customers.

The locker room looked like most. There were lockers lining the back wall and backless benches formed two rows in the center of the room. However there were notable differences. There were mirrored makeup stations along the side walls and, also, the musky smell that was normally attributed to male locker rooms was mixed with cheep perfumes. It was also very messy with a mix of both male and female clothes and unmentionables scattered on the floor and laying on the benches. Often the job of keeping the locker room clean fell to the new employees as a way of initiation.

Gin easily noticed Katsura at one of the makeup stations to his right. Katsura was dressed in a red lined, blue kimono that had an orange lotus blossom pattern. His yellow obi was tied with a red obijime with a small bow facing the front and his green obiage could clearly be seen from underneath his obi. He seemed to be placing the finishing touches to his glossy, long hair and makeup by applying a purple shade of lipstick to his lips.

"Oi, Zura, you really go all out. Perhaps your taste in clothes is changing. Have you started wearing matching panties and bra too? Huh?" the sarcasm dripped from Gin's voice.

"It is not Zura, it is Katsura," his automatic reply came as he stood up to face his old friend; ignoring everything else Gin had said. "It is rare that you come to see me, Gintoki. Have you changed your mind and come to join the Joi?"

"No no no no no no no no no no no," the siver haired man emphatically denied, "Though I did come here on business."

"Make it fast, Gintoki. My shift starts soon and this place wouldn't hire Elizabeth so I am the only one working. I can't afford to be fired. I told him not to wear so much makeup during the interview. He should have gone with a more natural look like I did."

"There is nothing natural about you," he replied. "I doubt it was just that thing's makeup that cost it the job. Regardless," Gin continued, "there have been some murders in Yoshiwara and the killer left an empty envelope with my name on it and this dagger." Gin pulled the ornate blade from his belt, showed it to Katsura and asked, "You recognize it, don't you?"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Katsura looked at the silver hilt engraved dagger proffered by Gin. It did look familiar but he wanted to get a better look before jumping to any conclusions. The part time tranny reached out and took the blade from his friend's outstretched arm. He slowly turned it in his hands and studied the silver inlay very closely. Even to an untrained eye the design was well executed and it was obvious that it was worth quite a bit of money. The most prominent image was a stag, its horns branching onto the daggers hilt. He did indeed know who the owner of this dagger was.

"Gintoki, you know that I know very well who would own such a dagger," he answered as he returned the blade to the silver haired man. "You must have sought me out for more reason than this"

Gin took the dagger and tucked it behind his back into his belt. "Zura, this was found at the site of a murder and two more at two other identical murders. You're right. I came to you to help me find him."

"I do not believe that he would murder someone, Gintoki," Katsura gravely asserted.

"I'm not as optimistic as you. However, even if he's being set up, I need to talk to him." Gin sighed with resignation. "These murders seem to be troubling a certain prostitute ninja friend of mine."

"You have the weirdest friends," the man said with a flick of his long black hair.

"You have no idea Zura," he retorted with a sardonic grin.

"It is not Zura! It is Katsura! When will you learn my name?" Katsura crossed his arms over his chest. Dressed up as he was, instead of looking angry he looked more like he was pouting. Gin found that disturbing but decided to keep that to himself. "Very well, I will tell you where he is because I trust you, but he is one of the Joi's biggest financiers."

"Somehow I knew you kept in touch with him."

Katsura turned away from his long time friend, picked up a piece of scrap paper and scribbled on it. He didn't seem to have a pen handy, so he wrote the address in purple lipstick. He turned back to Gin and handed him the paper. Gin glanced down and had to bite his tongue to stop from making a comment about the lipstick. What concerned him more was that this address was clear across Edo and he cringed at the money that he would have to spend on gas for his moped. It was currently running on fumes and he had lost his last yen in pachiko yesterday.

"Oi, thanks, I owe you one," the silver haired samurai told his long time comrade as he turned and walked out the door, dismissively waving his hand. "Don't let any dirty old men feel you up Zurako-chan.

First Gin had to retrieve his scooter which was back at Yorozuya Gin-chan. He had left it there to save on gas but there was no way he was going to walk clear across Edo. By now the midday sun was overhead and the heat felt oppressive. Today would have been a great day to spend at home, sitting in his comfortable chair, with his feet up on his desk. All he wanted to do was to relax with the rotating fan streaming cool air on him while he read Shounen Jump. Why does this stuff keep happening to him?

It was by chance that Gin noticed a familiar site. It was a tall blond man with his hair slicked back dressed in a white jacket trimmed in gold that was left open in the front. Underneath the jacket he wore a white vest and pants also trimmed in gold. His dead fish eyes looked down on everything that crossed them and on the man's right eye sat a monocle. In his left hand he held a cell phone up to his ear as he walked, leaving his right arm free to be ready to pull the katana worn at his hip, or the gun he had hidden under his jacket, at a moment's notice. So far, Gin hoped, Sasaki Isaburo, the leader of the self proclaimed elite Mimawarigumi, had not noticed him.

The silver haired samurai quickly ducked into a nearby alley. Now was not the time to get mixed up in that crazy man's business. With a sigh of relief Gin watched Sasaki enter a popular bakery. It looked like the annoying cell phone freak didn't notice him and he was in the clear. Just as he was about to resume his journey back to Yorozuya Gin-chan, he heard a catchy tune coming from somewhere on his person. After patting himself down, he found a hidden cell phone_. _

_How did that get there?_ He thought. With a sigh of resignation Gin flipped open the accursed device. Sure enough there was a text message from the Mimawarigumi captain.

The first thing Gin saw was a crying emoticon that looked like something a school girl would come up with. He didn't even know that phones could make symbols like those. The message that followed read, _u r so mean Gin-tan, hiding from me like that_. Not two seconds went by when another message came in, _I'm buying doughnuts for Nobutasu, _and sure enough there was another weird emoticon of someone handing out doughnuts. Or was that coffee? Followed by text saying,_ U want some? _Before He was able to clear out the second message a third came in. It showed a person putting on a monocle. The only real text said, _txt me! _And that was followed by yet another emoticon of a joyous person holding their arms up in celebration.

_It never ceased to amaze me how many emoticons that man used_, Gin thought_. What was he; a fifteen year old girl chatting with her friends about who's the cutest boy in school?_

After throwing the cell phone on the ground and stomping it into an unrecognizable pile of circuits, Gin continued down the alley to avoid any further contact with Sasaki Isaburo. Moving through the back alleys of Kabuki District, however, proved to take a lot more time than Gin had hoped. Not to mention that there were a myriad of offensive smells that had him side stepping and dancing his way through the path to avoid their sources. Finally he made his way out of the alley just down the street from Yorozuya Gin-chan. After wiping a rank, indescribable substance from his boots he crossed the last leg back.

A familiar voice called from behind him, "Welcome back Gintoki."

Startled for a moment, Gin's hand was less than half way to his bokken before he was able to name the voice behind him. Trying to pass the movement off as nothing more than an awkward wave he turned to greet the woman standing behind him. Tsukuyo stood there with a knowing smirk and twinkle of the eye. The mirth she felt for startling the man before her was evident on her face. Seeing her stand there with such an open child like expression warmed his heart just a little. It wasn't long ago that such an expression would have been impossible for her.

"Oi, Tsuki-chan," he said sardonically. "I already have one ninja stalker. I don't need another."

Tsukuyo shot the samurai before her a dirty look, though, at the same time her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "I have far more important things to do than follow you around. Oh…and by the way don't call me something so cute."

"And yet here you are for the second time today." he continued with a sadistic grin, "Huh? Maybe you have a crush on me?"

"You know why I am here," the blond ninja said. Trying to calm down, she pulled her kiseru out from her kimono and took her time in lighting it. Bringing the iron tipped wooden pipe to her lips, she took a long drag. "What have you found out?"

Gin let out a loud sigh. "What a slave driver. I was just about to follow a lead. I just came back to get my moped."

The man with the dead fish eyes walked over to where he had his dependable moped parked. However no matter how dependable a vehicle is it will not run without any gas. After getting on he turned the key in the ignition and the engine came to life. But, before Gin could so much as blink, the motor sputtered and then died. He tried to turn the key again, but the engine would not turn over. It was official. He was out of gas.

"Having trouble there?" Tsukuyo asked him as she took another puff from her kiseru.

"Tsukuyo-sama, can you lend me a couple thousand yen for some fuel?"

"No. However I am willing to pay you two thousand yen to give me a ride to where ever it is that you are going," she answered as she pulled two one thousand yen bills from her kimono. She waved them enticingly at him.

Gin got up off the moped and walked up to his would be passenger. He held out his helmet to her, "Oi, as they say, 'safety first'. So put this on."

Giving Gin a steady look, Tsukuyo dumped her kiseru against the hand railing and tucked it away. Before taking the helmet, the female ninja removed the miniature kunai decorating her flaxen hair, and took down the bun tied on top of her head. She put her accessories up her left kimono sleeve and ran her fingers through her locks, shaking them loose. After taking the helmet from her ride she fastened it to her head.

"Let's go get this heap of junk fueled up," she said.

"Yes ma'am."

Walking side by side the two of them pushed the moped along the dirt street. A gust of wind caused dust to swirl in the air. Gin sneezed as the current of air blew past them. The weather recently had been really dry causing the packed earth to become loose. However it was better than walking during the monsoon. During the rainy season the dust didn't cause problems with allergies, however, the muddy streets made it much more difficult to travel.

Before long they reached Gengai's Machine Hall. The sounds of grinding gears and the striking of a hammer on metal rang through the streets. Many of the pedestrians had to cover their ears as they passed by. Out front Hiraga Gengai was toiling away. He was an old, mostly bald man who was missing not just a few front teeth. His graying hair was gathered in a topknot and also covering his face was a scraggly beard. Covering his eyes for protection was a pair of his trademark goggles. He wore a plain green work outfit with a black belt and pouch.

Gengai noticed the pair walk up from the corner of his eye and looked up. A big grin spread across his face, easily showing his many missing teeth. "Gin-no-ji! It's great to see you." He looked over appreciatively at the girl standing next to him and asked, "Who's the pretty lass you brought with you?"

"Whoa Gengai-jii! I would watch yourself if I were you. She's dangerous." Gin warned him.

"Hmm. The good ones always are," he said with a wry smile. "I see you come for some fuel. I hope you brought money with you this time."

Gin pulled out the two one thousand yen bills Tsukuyo gave him earlier and handed it to Gengai. "This should cover what I owe you and hopefully fill me up."

"Ooo Gin-no-gi, with this all is forgiven," the old man replied with a laugh.

After filling up his moped Gin swung his leg over and sat down, his weight sinking the ride slightly. He turned the key in the ignition and the scooter purred like a kitten, a kitten that needed an oil change soon. Looking back, he patted the seat behind him and gave the woman an inviting look. Hesitantly, she climbed onto the back of the vehicle. Not sure where to put her hands she hung them down to her sides.

"Oi, you may want to hold on," The man arrogantly told her.

"Hold on to what?" she asked him. "I've never ridden one of these before."

"Wrap your arms around me. I don't need you falling off and killing my insurance rates with your medical bills."

Tsukuyo tentatively wrapped her arms around the man in front of her. As she did she felt her heart start to beat harder than she could ever remember. Her face was feeling flush and the rest of her body felt like she was on fire with embarrassment. She was confused by these feelings that were flooding her. She only hoped that Gin wouldn't somehow notice. Surely he could hear her heart beating from this distance.

"Okay," Gin announced. "Let's go."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Gin, with Tsukuyo's arms wrapped around him, sped down the highway. The traffic was at a standstill, the road packed full of cars. It was nearing evening and the cloudy sky was rose colored from the setting sun in the west. This time of day it was impossible to get anywhere, however not on a moped. They weaved in and out of traffic like a snake through the reeds. Gin took pleasure in getting his passenger to grab on tighter on a few of the close calls.

"Gintoki, slow down! Where are we going?" Tsukuyo yelled in an attempt to be heard over the rush of air streaming past them.

The former samurai let off the accelerator and slowed to a more leisurely speed. "Eh? I thought maybe you'd want to go on a date in the city." Gin paused a moment before continuing. "I see no reason not to tell you. I will tell you of one of the darkest days when I fought in the Joi war."

.X.

The silence in the night was deafening. It was hard to believe that just minutes ago the chaotic cacophony of battle had just dominated the area. Gin and Katsura stood next to each other, their respective white and green haori billowing quietly in the wind, in the ruins of what was once a prosperous town. Most of the buildings were on fire and dead bodies of Amanto and the local villagers alike laid scattered everywhere. The ground was stained red with blood. This had been nothing more than a massacre. The rest of the Joi were looking for more survivors in all this mess.

Their Joi army had come upon the massacre when it had returned to the village for supplies. One of Sakamoto's merchant contacts lived here and helped them with their war efforts. The ensuing battle wasn't much of a fight. Gin, in a fit of righteous rage, flew into the Amanto with his katana drawn cutting down Amanto after Amanto before they even knew they were under attack. The Amanto had tried to hold off the furious attack of the Joi army but the battle barely lasted ten minutes before all of them were dead. Other than a few cuts and bruises the Joi army had achieved a complete victory.

Gin didn't feel victorious. How could he with all of the dead bodies of the villagers around him. He couldn't help but to feel the blood of each and every one of these people staining his hands so scarlet that it could never wash off. "Will this never end?" He whispered to himself.

Clustered together in front of him were the only survivors, five children in total. The oldest was the eldest son of Sakamoto's merchant contact. He stood tall with a look of rage. In his fist he still clutched a dagger drenched in Amanto blood, so tightly that his hand was turning white. After that was a pair of twins, a girl and a boy. The girl's face had a long gash running down her cheek. Her brother had his arms wrapped around her trying to stop her from crying. Right next to them was the young blacksmith apprentice. He couldn't have been more than twelve years old, but he was trying to comfort the eight year old girl next to him who had a vicious wound in her side that had been treated.

Walking up to Gin and Katsura was a man who, like his comrades, wore a haori, though his was blue. As he approached the pair the man was laughing, "Ahahahaha, Kintoki, this didn't seem to go well."

The man wore a helmet made of black leather that draped all the way down over his shoulders. Wrapping around his forehead, over the leather, a band of metal provided extra protection. His light grey kimono could be seen under the steel plated armor protecting his belly. His loose fitting grey pants were held up with a light grey obi. He wore black socks over his pants up to his knees and on his feet was a pair of wooden sandals. At his hip a katana was sheathed and though the man's face held an open, friendly expression, he moved with the grace of an experienced warrior.

"Eh? We have known each other long enough for you to know my name Tatsuma. Get it right dumbass," Gin growled at the man known as Tatsuma Sakamoto "Look around you and sense the mood. Wipe that stupid grin off your face."

Katsura placed his hand solemnly upon his comrade's shoulder. "Calm down Gintoki. Now is not the time to fight each other," he implored.

Gin shook the man's hand off him and shot him a dirty look. Katsura returned a look as steady as stone. For a moment they stared at each other before Gin looked away. "You're right, Zura."

"It is not Zura, It is Katsura. For someone worried about his own name you sure like to take liberties with other people's"

Ignoring his friend's complaints, Gin worked his way towards the children. He knelt down in front of the young crying girl and placed his hand on her head giving her a sympathetic pat. He looked over at the four other survivors until his gaze met that of the oldest boy's holding his dagger with a death grip. In the boy's eyes Gin saw the anger and despair that he had also felt not long ago when his master was put to death unjustly by the Bakufu. The boy had acquitted himself well during the fight. He had taken a few of them by surprise with that dagger of his. Gin personally saw him deal with a pig faced Amanto, who seemed to have been taking pleasure in cutting the twin girl's face and had caused the wound in the younger girl's side, with a deft stab to the kidneys.

"I'm sorry that we couldn't get here sooner," The white haired samurai gently apologized.

The merchant's son held Gin's gaze for a moment longer before dropping the blade in his hand to the ground with the tip stabbing the earth. The hilt was engraved in silver that depicted a stag and was streaked with Amanto blood from the fight. The boy's hand also had the engraving etched into his hand from the pressure of holding the dagger so tightly. He wearily sunk to the ground as the adrenalin left his body and exhaustion took over.

"Gintoki, what are we going to do with them?" Katsura asked as he joined his friend. "I would not feel right sending them to an orphanage."

"We shouldn't have to, Zura," Sakamoto butted in. "Young Kazuma here is old enough to take care over his family's business. Old man Kurosaki was asking me about anyone I could recommend as an apprentice in his smithy and I know Sanada here is very skilled for his age. The Saotome twins here are not much younger than Kazuma. However we should try to find a good home for this young lady right here." He pointed to the young girl Gin was consoling.

"I will take care of them, all of them," the boy named Kazuma unsteadily got to his feet and declared. "I will take over my father's business and I will make sure they can grow up and live happily. It is the least I can do since it is my family's fault this village was attacked. We helped to keep the Joi supplied. It's our fault that everyone is dead and that Saotome-chan and Koizumi-chan are hurt."

"Stop blaming yourself, Kazuma. It is not your fault or your family's," Katsura told the young man.

Kazuma was about to open his mouth when the boy, Saotome, blurted out at the Joi members, "You're right! It's your fault. If you were not fighting this war then this wouldn't have happened!"

"Stop it, Takaki! If they hadn't come then we'd all be dead," Kazuma admonished his friend.

"No, he's right. Kazuma is it?" Gin stood up and looked the young would-be merchant in the eyes. "But because I see what these Amanto are capable of I can't just stop. I want to protect this country but I can't even protect one village. So protect these four here. They are all the family you have left now."

"Ahahaha Kintoki, I am going to stay behind to help Kazuma-san here," Sakamoto told the man dressed in white as he rubbed the back of his neck. "It's a good thing you followed your hunch and brought us back here. What tipped you off?"

Gin turned away from everyone and softly said, "The birds. They were acting weird. I just wish we could have saved more of them." He looked up at the cloudy night sky and with a guilty sigh continued. "Let's properly take care of the dead."

.X.

Tsukuyo had listened in silence while Gin told the story. He didn't talk about his past very often. "So do you know what happened to them after?" she asked him.

"After we took care of the bodies, Tatsuma stayed behind and helped those five get moved to Edo and used his contacts to get Ryuu Kazuma set up to take over his father's business. Kazuma still supported the Joi for the rest of the war and, according to Zura, he still does." Gin paused a moment before continuing, his voice sounded strained. "Riri Koizumi didn't survive her wounds. I don't know about the others."

They rode for a while with neither of them saying anything. Gin took a turn off of the highway and pulled over to recheck the address that was given to him by Katsura. They were in a nice part of town. Unlike the Kabuki District the streets here were paved and were kept free of litter. The homes, on this street, were all gated compounds and most of them had guards that were keeping a close watch on the obvious intruders sitting on the old moped.

Tsukuyo looked over Gin's shoulder to see what he was reading. "I..is that purple lipstick?" she asked him with and edge to her voice. "You said you were talking to your contact, but weren't you really just out playing with women? Is that the address to a stripper bar? Gintoki, we don't have time for this."

The accused womanizer turned to look at his accuser ready to give a snide comeback. However when he got a look of her face he could only give a look of astonishment. She was totally serious here. Her arms were crossed over her chest, her brow was creased and her lips were downturned. The normal composed and cool headed Tsukuyo was nowhere to be found. Just what did that woman think of him?

"Oi, stupid, I got this from Zura. I got this address from that idiot cross dressing freak. Like I said, Zura told me Kazuma still helped him out," Gin shouted at his upset passenger. "Do you think I would take you with me to a stripper bar? Dumbass!"

Tsukuyo started to flush pink. "Well how was I supposed to know that? I can't read minds. Why do you have such weird friends?"

A minute later they were standing on the sidewalk with Tsukuyo's helmet thrown on the ground, and her hair in disarray. They were waving their arms at each other and shouting at the tops of their lungs. The people passing by just kept their heads down and pretended to not see them. Finally the security guard from the house they had stopped in front of had had enough. He had watched them closely since they have arrived and it was time for them to be on their way.

"Hey, you two, have your lovers spat somewhere else. Move along," he admonished them.

"Stupid, pick up your helmet and let's get this day over with," Gin told her as he climbed back up on the scooter.

Tsukuyo bent over to pick up the helmet, strapped it back on her head, and muttered to herself. _Why did this man get under my skin so easily? When was the last time I got into an argument like that? _Stillembarrassed with herself she got back on Gin's moped and wrapped her arms around him once again to hold on. The white haired man turned the key in the ignition and, after double-checking the address, they sped down the street.


End file.
